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Thursday, January 22, 2015

As some of you have followed my posts or articles from my sports nutrition work at Fuel4mance, you know that Fuel4mance has now rolled into a new company called eNRG Performance, spearheaded by my colleague, Bob Seebohar. As the staff has been getting settled in, I wanted to take this opportunity to explain my take on what the vision for this new company is and how it might affect you as an athlete.

Each of the arms, as portrayed in the company logo, signifies an important aspect of being the “complete” athlete. No matter if you are a recreational athlete (or “fitness enthusiast”), a strength/power athlete, or an endurance athlete, your health and performance depend on these 4 arms.

The 4 Arms...

Nutrition: I rank this the highest in priority because how you nourish your body will greatly affect your short- and long-term health and athletic performance; and in essence, nutrition impacts the other “arms” of eNRG. This isn’t just about what you eat for your 3 square meals a day. This area also involves nutrient timing and nutrition periodization to support your needs as an athlete while also examining your risk factors for medical conditions and disease states to choose which nutrition plan is best for you. We do not have one set formula we apply to all individuals. In fact, you should be cautious of any nutritional professional who prescribes the same meal plans or nutrition advice for the masses without consideration of you, the individual.

Not only does our nutrition approach include the education component as described above, but our nutrition services are designed to support behavior changes to make you more likely to be successful.Can you achieve your nutrition goals by a single visit with a nutritionist?It’s possible, but rare for the majority who have goals such as weight loss or body composition improvements, figuring out a nutrition plan for an endurance race, improving daily nutrition patterns to avoid medications, or preventing the onset of disease. Investing in your health and performance through nutrition is not a “one and done” type of service, no matter what you may see in mass media advertisements.Testing:These are the “pop the hood” assessments that tell us more definitively what is going on with you.Data that come from these assessments is empowering! We offer:

Metabolic Efficiency testing, which is an indicator of how well your daily nutrition plan is working to support your health and athletic performance goals. This test is for anyone, not just an endurance athlete.

Lactate Threshold testing, more often used by endurance athletes, to take the guessing game out of how your training zones should be set for heart rate and intensity for the bike or the run.

Sweat rate testing to learn how your body loses its important electrolytes and to more accurately develop hydration and supplementation plans for training and competition.

Other general health testing such as blood pressure, blood glucose, and oxygen saturation which are important to capture, especially if you are wanting to take control of your health.

Coaching:No, we aren't trying to steal you from your current coach or training club. What we are trying to do is offer you a performance center where you can get supplemental skills training (specific to your goals) in a semi-private or private setting.And if you don’t have a coach or you prefer to coach yourself, you can always consider a consultation with one of our staff who have varying backgrounds and will work with you to take your training to the next level.Training and Recovery: The 4th piece of the pie is one often neglected, particularly by recreational athletes and endurance athletes.Do you have a strength or functional movement program designed to improve your physical weaknesses? How do you know it’s best for you and to support your athletic goals?What about your recovery from training?Aha! Despite the popular notion that chocolate milk and an ice bath might be all you need, our recovery center will open your eyes to a more complete picture of what the body needs to fully adapt to the stresses imposed by the training we do. We are also featuring our cycling studio where you can use the state of the art Wahoo Kickr trainers either on your own or in a group setting to get in a quality workout.

As for me personally, I will be still offering nutrition services nationwide to athletes of all levels by phone or Skype. But now I also have a dedicated performance center where I can meet with athletes to conduct private nutrition sessions and physical assessments and provide group education sessions. I am beyond excited to be a part of the new venture. Check us out and stop by when you are in the area: www.eNRGperformance.com. Look for our official grand opening soon!